Church Social Conversation Board

Not feeling like part of the church social scene is one of the worries people mention most frequently to my co-author* Charlotte Riggle and me.

How can people who are nonverbal or have slower language processing participate in a coffee hour, a potluck, or lemonade on the porch? How can someone let you know their needs when the room is so loud? What does a person have to do to get a chair? What about special food needs, which often accompany special needs life?

To help alleviate these woes, I have put together a Church Social Conversation Board. It’s suitable for use by one person (e.g., me pointing to the symbols to speak to you), in partnership (e.g., me modeling the board’s use and helping guide my son through the board so he can communicate), and for conversations in the visual medium (e.g., me pointing to phrases and you responding by pointing to other phrases). My hope is that the summer months will be a good time to phase in this extra layer of welcome for families with special needs.

Download this free printable here for non-commercial use:

church social page 1

church social page 2

I recommend laminating the sheets together so that the board is one page front and back, for the sake of portability and ease of use. Sets of two fully prepared full color, heavy duty laminated Church Social Conversation Boards are also available in the Awetism Etsy shop.

*Did you know that I’m writing a book that will help churches understand and welcome families with special needs? If you follow this blog and/or {my Facebook page} and {Instagram}, you can help me show a publisher that people need a book like that.